The anatomy of the fingers and hand is such that surgery on those areas can present the surgeon with vexating problems relating not only to the particular medical problem involved, but also to the location of and the proper access to the area of concern in order to conveniently perform required surgery. Proper positioning of the fingers and hand during the taking of X-rays of those portions of the anatomy undergoing surgery facilitates and simplifies what is often a delicate and complicated surgical procedure, especially when considered in light of the complexity of the bone structure, vascular network and nervous system components present in the hand and fingers. In order to position the hand and fingers for the purpose of taking X-rays, particularly in connection with the performance of surgery, it has heretofore been necessary for the surgeon or a technician to manually hold the hand and fingers in place which often proved inadequate in achieving the desired position of the hand and fingers. Moreover, and perhaps more importantly, the surgeon or technician is exposed to the dangerous radiation emitted by the X-rays. Lead aprons scarcely allay the fear of the surgeon or technician, who is exposed time and time again to this dangerous radiation.
Prior devices for positioning the hand and/or arm have generally not been designed for the purpose of stably positioning the fingers and hand during the taking of X-rays and therefore are inadequate to solve the many problems faced by the surgeon or technician seeking to obtain proper positioning for the purpose of obtaining X-rays. For instance, U.S. Pat. No. 4,316,454 to Perka is a therapeutic positioning device for a paralyzed limb having either a flaccid or spastic condition and consists of a support board and a rod capable of being positioned in any one of a plurality of holes, the rod being of a size which permits a hand to be placed directly next to, and if possible, in a holding position around the rod. U.S. Pat. No. 1,879,401 to Monaco discloses an exercising device for paralyzed limbs in which pegs are used for the purpose of exercising the paralyzed limb, U.S. Pat. No. 3,903,878 to Spann discloses a device for supporting a hand or foot to prevent making use of a polyurethane block, U.S. Pat. No. 3,480,013 to Garber discloses a limb restraint device for intravenous injections and the like, and U.S. Pat. No. 3,568,671 to Graham discloses a splint formed of three tapered segments joined end-to-end.
An attempt to simplify and provide a more stable positioning of the forearm, hand and fingers during surgery is evident in U.S. Pat. No. 3,746,332 to Hakstian which provides for a workbench formed of a ramp for the positioning of a patient's forearm, the ramp merging into a horizontal platform for the placing of the patient's wrist and hand. Other attempts to solve positioning problems during surgery are disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,204,533 to Forster et al. (A surgical element for fixing the position of the hand and fingers during an operation utilizing movable rings to secure the fingers of the patient during surgery) and U.S. Pat. No. 4,082,257 to Strickland (surgery table which utilizes straps and a finger loop retractor to secure portions of the hand during surgery). None of these patents, however, has addressed the problems associated with the proper positioning of the hand and fingers for the purpose of safely procuring X-rays, particularly before, during and after surgery. Any device used for this purpose in the prior art would not allow the proper flexibility in positioning the hand and fingers and in any event would not be conducive to the taking of X-rays since they are of a radiopaque nature.
Thus, there remains a need for a device that will permit a great degree of flexibility in the stable positioning of the hand and fingers for a purpose of taking X-rays while eliminating the need for the surgeon or technician to be exposed to harmful radiation.